The Mind
"If you want to heal your body you must first
heal your mind" -Plato
The human mind has two components: the conscious mind, which is associated with the left side of the brain, and the subconscious mind, also referred to as the unconscious mind, which is associated with the right side of the brain. Many people compare our mind to an iceberg; the conscious mind being the tip of the iceberg, and, according to them, represents approximately 10%, and the subconscious mind being the part underneath the water, about 90%.
The conscious mind is described as being governed by the left side of the brain. It's the mind that uses reason and logic, to focus upon things, to differentiate them, to decide if something is good or bad, real or unreal, according to each person's definitions and perception of reality. It includes the critical faculties and the skeptical aspect of the mind, the egoic mind, and, according to personal beliefs, accepts or rejects new information. The conscious mind is active during waking hours, but it's not in a constant state. Its level of alertness can vary between maximum down to minimal functioning, according to the level of environmental stimulation we encounter. In hypnosis we create the conditions for the conscious mind to be in the observer state, so that the subconscious mind would be accessible for revealing the root causes of illnesses and accepting the incoming positive suggestions, to correct the negative patters of thinking.
The subconscious mind,or unconscious mind, is described as being governed by the right side of the brain. It's a constant during life, it's always present. It's the motor of the brain, the microprocessor that powers the cortex. It's guiding the activity of the entire body: the breathing, blood flow, production of cells, chemical reactions, and so on. It is the seat of our subconscious belief systems and of our emotions. It is the realm of our imagination and creativity.The subconscious mind is described as being the mind of our soul, and has access to memories that cannot be access in the conscious mind state of awareness. The exploration of the subconscious mind is essential for healing and recovery.
The subconscious mind is not limited by our self-imposed limitations of time, space, and reality, and remarkably, does not have strong critical faculties as the conscious mind does taking as truth most information that reaches it. That's why suggestions given under hypnosis are so efficient.
The subconscious mind could be compared to a computer operating software that has been shaped over time from experiences, thoughts and beliefs. We constantly absorb new ideas, and sometimes those ideas are not beneficial. Hypnotherapy is a very efficient way of identifying and dismantling unbeneficial and disempowering belief systems; of planting healthier beliefs that will help correct the old patterns of thinking, influencing the production and release of hormones in the body, and, as a result, the emotional states, improving our health and the way we feel.
Hypnosis is a safe, meditative mental state in which the conscious, intellectual, analytical mind is in a state of minimum functioning, and the subconscious mind is opened and available for revealing suppressed memories and negative emotions associated with them. At the same time, it is receptive to positive suggestions, incorporating them in it's belief system, creating new connections between the brain cells, the neurons, forming new pathways of thinking. This ability of the brain to release the old data and incorporate new information is called neuroplasticity or cortical remapping.
In other words, hypnosis is a quick way of learning, both consciously and especially subconsciously.
Many of the psychogenic problems are based upon negative beliefs incorporated by the subconscious mind, many times during childhood, when the conscious mind is not fully formed. They act like viruses in the operating software of the brain. Hypnotherapy is a very efficient method to replace these unhealthy beliefs.